Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) yesterday bowed in apology in the Legislative Yuan for using a pejorative term about Aborigines on Wednesday, after an online apology and a statement failed to appease Aboriginal lawmakers and civic groups.
A proposal by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus to turn Chiu over to the legislature’s Discipline Committee was voted down by the DPP caucus yesterday, after which KMT lawmakers demanded an apology from Chiu.
Chiu walked to the center of the legislative chamber and bowed, saying “sorry” first to KMT lawmakers and then toward the audience mezzanine where reporters are seated.
Photo: Liao Chen-Huei, Taipei Times
KMT legislators Sufin Siluko (廖國棟), an Amis Aborigine, and Yosi Takun (孔文吉), a Sediq, and other Aboriginal lawmakers on Thursday criticized Chiu, saying her apologies were “insincere and unacceptable.”
During a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee on Wednesday, the KMT caucus asked to have Council of Agriculture officials report on the government’s plan to lift a ban on Japanese food imports from prefectures surrounding the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant meltdown, while DPP lawmakers said that a budget bill for the council should be given priority, leading to an argument between the two sides.
According to Sufin, Chiu said told KMT lawmakers: “There is no use talking to you huan-a [番仔, ‘uncivilized person’].”
Chiu later said that the term meant “unreasonable person” in Hoklo (also known as Taiwanese), but following an outcry from Aboriginal lawmakers, she released a statement saying she did not intend to provoke Aborigines and regretted causing offense.
“A politician should be circumspect in speech and action, and I sincerely apologize for any misunderstanding that might have resulted from my statements,” she wrote on Thursday in a Facebook post.
However, Sufin on Thursday said that “every single one of Taiwan’s 23 million citizens knows huan-a is a derogatory term for Aborigines.”
Chiu, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and the DPP caucus should formally apologize, he said.
Sufin said he had initiated Discipline Committee proceedings against Chiu and would file an additional motion to condemn her remark at the legislature’s general assembly.
“Chiu’s apology is insincere and unacceptable. President Tsai must make another apology to Aborigines and the DPP caucus should fix this,” he said.
KMT Legislator Sra Kacaw (鄭天財), an Amis, said Chiu’s remark could have been made in the heat of the moment, but her ensuing apologies were “attempts to cover up anti-Aborigine discrimination.”
KMT Legislator Chien Tung-ming (簡東明), who also goes by his Paiwan name, Uliw Qaljupayare, said many Aboriginal residents of his constituency in Pingtung County had expressed their anger to him during face-to-face meetings on Wednesday, and that they wanted him to publicly reiterate their condemnation.
“I cannot believe hearing this from my friend Chiu,” said Non-Partisan Solidarity Union Legislator May Chin (高金素梅), an Atayal.
Chin said she believes Chiu “made the comment without ill-intent and in the heat of the moment,” but apologing afterward “should not have been so difficult.”
In related news, KMT Taipei and New Taipei City councilors on Thursday held a news conference at the KMT headquarters in Taipei, calling for Aborigines to “break the silence and stand in solidarity.”
New Taipei City Councilor Yang Chun-mei (楊春妹) also panned Minister of Council of Indigenous Peoples Icyang Parod.
“As the highest official in charge of Aboriginal affairs, he abandoned his responsibility to defend Aborigines from Chiu’s language,” Yang said, adding that Tsai needs to apologize to Aborigines or they would “take to the streets” in protest.
Additional reporting by CNA
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
A British man was arrested for attempting to smuggle 14.37kg of marijuana into Taiwan through Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taipei Customs said late yesterday. The man, who arrived from Bangkok at 9pm on Friday, was asked by customs officers to open his luggage during a random inspection, Taipei Customs said in a news release. The passenger, whose identity was not disclosed, refused to open his suitcase and tried to flee the restricted area. He was eventually subdued by three customs officials and an Aviation Police Bureau officer. A later search of his checked luggage uncovered 14.37kg of marijuana buds. The case was handed over
RSS